The Best Mystery Audiobooks for Sleuthing on the Go

Four unlikely friends meet every Thursday in the Jigsaw Room of their retirement village. Together, they discuss unsolved crimes. It’s all good fun. After all, they never expected to find themselves in the middle of a real-life murder investigation. 

But then a local developer is found dead, and the only clue is a mysterious photograph left next to the body. Can the Thursday Murder Club solve the case before more bodies stack up?

The talented Lesley Manville brings this charming novel to life, bringing personality and depth to the amateur septuagenarian detectives that make this story unforgettable.  

Wielding the talent that brought Matthew from Downton Abbey and Disney’s Beast to life, Dan Stevens deftly navigates this classic Christie tale. Ten strangers are invited to a remote island off the coast of England.

Each is brought there with a specific promise ranging from job offers to summer vacations. But one by one, they start dying, each death more gruesome than the last.

Who is behind these shocking murders? And will anyone survive to find out? 

It takes enormous talent to bring this legendary detective’s exploits to life. Someone like actor, writer, director, and comedian Stephen Fry.

His agile performance shines new light on these beloved stories, highlighting the wry sense of humor while maintaining the taut suspense that makes these mysteries so enjoyable to listen to.

With each story broken into an individual mystery, this collection is easily consumed in bite-sized chunks or one delightful binge listen. 

Chief Inspector Armand Gamache is well-liked, respected, smart, and passionate about his work. When he’s called out to Three Pines for a suspicious death, he immediately suspects it’s more than just a hunting trip gone wrong.

The steady voice of Ralph Cosham highlights the tense ambiance of this gripping mystery while still letting the quaint setting shine through.

It’s a classic whodunit with a dashing sleuth that is a must-listen-to mystery fans and Louise Penny fans alike. 

Molly Gray likes her job. As a maid at the Regency Grand Hotel, she finds comfort and sanctuary in her routine.

Until she opens a room with a dead body inside.

Bringing all of Molly’s quirks to life is actress Lauren Ambrose. Her performance captures the delightful cast of friends and foes, while giving personality to this character-driven Clue-like mystery. 

There’s no one better to bring this iconic book to life than Hall of Fame narrator, Simon Vance. His voice paired with this gripping, twisty tale, brings life to these unforgettable characters. Journalist Mikael Blomkvist needs a win. 

Reeling from a libel trial, he’s desperate to solve a decades-old cold case involving a missing heiress. To help, he finds an unlikely ally in Lisbeth Salander, an angry hacker who happens to be a genius.

As they investigate, they find themselves mired deeper in scandal and corruption, and when they follow the trail, it takes them to the highest levels of power and government. 

It’s 1948 and Black war veteran Easy Rawlings is jobless and broke in Los Angeles.

So when he stops for a drink and a white man offers him a job, he takes it. This launches his new career as a private eye as he searches for a mysterious blonde in the midst of jazz clubs and gangsters.

Voiced by the accomplished actor Michael Boatman, he brings a likable affability to Rawlings character, giving depth to this sharp, immersive mystery by Walter Mosley. 

Featuring a podcast within the novel and brought to life with a full cast narration, the layers of Lisa Jewell's None of This is True unfold at an addictive pace. Podcaster Alix Summer meets her “birthday twin”, Josie Fair, at a local pub when she’s out celebrating her forty-fifth birthday. 

A few days later, Alix and Josie run into each other again, Josie proposes herself as the next podcast subject. Josie’s life is complicated, but Alix can’t help her fascination. But as Josie tangles herself in Alix’s life, dark secrets start to emerge.

And when Josie disappears, Alix finds herself at the center of her own podcast—with her family’s life on the line. 

This classic gothic mystery was an immediate bestseller when first published in 1938, and has yet to go out of print. It’s a haunting tale where the imposing Manderley is as much a character as the nameless protagonist or the foreboding housekeeper.

Narrator Anna Massey creates a mesmerizing rhythm that weaves tension into each twist and creates an unsettling and foreboding tone that strikes a lingering and melancholy chord. 

Georgie is 34th in line for the throne. She has royal connections, the kind that allows her to both have tea and spy on the Queen. But when she finds a body in a bathtub, her life takes a dramatic swing toward the unexpected. 

Rhys Bowen is an award-winning author known for her cheeky, cozy mysteries and there’s no one better to bring her characters to life than Audie award-winning and Narrator Hall of Famer Katherine Kellgren.

She seamlessly transitions between accents and characters, giving listeners a magical and charming experience. 

This 1939 pulp hit has some serious narration shoes to fill. Adapted into a film in 1946, the enigmatic Philip Marlowe was played by the iconic Humphrey Bogart.

It’s a performance that sticks, and narrator Scott Brick embodied that same whiskey-rimmed, wise-cracking dry tone to his own version of Marlowe.

As Marlowe maneuvers the mystery of blackmail and corpses, the history of LA seeps into the story, imbuing the plot with historical intrigue that weaves an intoxicating tale you can’t stop listening to.